Botox in Bangkok: The Experience

I saw my reflection in a shop window and thought “Jesus… i’ve aged – my partying lifestyle has caught up with me!”. I averted by eyes from the offending window and continued on my journey around the new Terminal 21 shopping mall in Bangkok.

Shortly after, like an oasis in a desert, I conveniently stumbled upon a cosmetic surgery practice within the same shopping centre… was this a sign from the heavens? It could only mean one thing so I took the plunge and walked in.

Now look… Asia has a bad reputation for cosmetic surgery and procedures. Rumours and hearsay about severe disfigurement and horror stories of botched operations by inexperienced staff are part of the urban legend landscape. Was I concerned? Slightly. Did it stop me? Not a chance.

I approached the counter and enquired about costing as I was looking for a simple crows feet touchup. It worked out to be roughly $300 AUD and I even bought the upgrade for an upper forehead treatment whilst I was at it (all up 36 units) . I was on a roll.

Before I knew it I was having a consultation with the Doctor. Now I’ll admit that her english wasn’t the best, but we got the basics across and she appeared to know what she was talking about. I got to see the botox bottle so I knew i wasn’t going to get injected with Pine-O-Clean. Comfort factor was high so I was soon in the doctors seat getting ice pads applied to my face in preparation for my impending shots.

Did it hurt? Well, it wasn’t that bad in certain spots. In others, it was a little worse. But overall it was done with reasonably quickly. I had a couple of small bruises (roughly the size of a ballpoint) which disappeared after Day 1 and results appeared after Day 2 or 3. The crows feet no longer appeared so I was a happy camper. It was all a bit of an anticlimax really. No botched disaster for me!

My advice to others? If you’re in Bangkok and your going to a reputable practice – why not? Give it a crack. It’s cheaper than in the West and in my experience it wasn’t as disturbing as I had imagined. Make sure you go to somewhere that looks half respectable like the practice I went to in Terminal 21.

Good Luck!

Have you had any cosmetic procedures done in Thailand? How did it work out for you? Would you do it again?